That’s not to say they didn’t TRY to sign players. Obviously, in the case of Jack Grealish and that late deadline-day bid for Chelsea’s Tammy Abraham, they did.

But there were parameters. They could have pushed the button on Grealish but weren’t willing to match Villa’s valuation. At Spurs the motto seems to be ‘if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.’

Someone, – and I would be surprised if it wasn’t Levy, aware of the huge cost of the new stadium – has said: ‘We don’t need a variety of European Championship and World Cup winners in the building.’

Spurs chief Levy (Image: Getty)

Yet an even bigger feather in Tottenham’s cap is hanging on to all their major players.

That’s a huge surprise. So much so that I had a bet with a Spurs fan at the end of last season that at least one of Dele Alli, Harry Kane and Christian Eriksen would be playing his football elsewhere this term. They’ve stayed put – and it’s cost me.

I was certain that the lure of a bigger club would entice one of them away.

Now, look, there is always going to be food on the table in those households – I’m not saying they are short of a few bob – but Spurs don’t pay the kind of money that persuaded Alexis Sanchez to plump for Manchester United over Manchester City.

That’s a fact. And everyone wants to maximise what they can earn – it’s human nature.

Spurs star Dele Alli (Image: Tottenham Hotspur FC)

Harry Kane and Lucas Moura (Image: Reuters)

I understand that performance-related pay is the order of the day. And that’s healthy. No problems with that.

I just wonder if some wise old sage in and around the dressing room at Spurs has handed down the same advice I received when I was younger.

One day I cadged a lift back to London with my old Crystal Palace team-mate Andy Gray after we had finished playing a pre-season friendly at Crawley.

I was just starting to break through and I told him that Wimbledon – they were in the Premier League at the time – had come in for me and were offering me decent dough to go and play for them. But I also had other offers on the table.

Andy said: “Never go for the money. Go for the challenge, go to play for a manager you like, go because you’ll play regularly. But don’t go for the money. If you are good at what you do, the money will find you.”

Perhaps that’s the case with those superstars at Tottenham because they are looking every inch that at the moment.

High-class players, working for a manager who has finally managed to instil some durability into that Spurs squad. Every time I see them play, they look fresh. They know what they are doing. There is a plan.

Spurs were superb at United (Image: Tottenham Hotspur FC)

Let’s be honest, they came under pressure at Old Trafford on Monday. But their victory wasn’t a fluke. No one is that lucky.

Where Spurs find themselves today is the product of a rational thought process and an ability to take a step backwards and coolly look at the situation.